The George S. May International Company celebrates its 83rd Anniversary in 2008 as the world’s foremost management consulting firm to specifically address medium and small businesses. It should be noted, however that the George S May Company serves large businesses as well through their major accounts program. Since George S. May himself founded the company in 1925, the George S May International Company has maintained its focus on helping companies improve their business operations.
The history of the George S. May International Company parallels, and is interwoven with, the history of American business from the 20th century to the present, and the company is also among America’s most successful family-owned companies.
Very few of the companies started throughout the past eighty years are still in business. Fewer still are doing the same kind of work the founder set out to do. The company’s success not only in business terms but in terms of maintaining its focus on its mission testify to the business skill, marketing genius and foresight of founder George S. May (1890-1962).
“I don’t believe too much in looking back. If you’ve done well, you’re too inclined to become smug. If you’ve done poorly, you’re inclined to become discouraged. Keep looking ahead – yesterday’s done with – think about today and tomorrow,” commented Mr. May in an interview in the 1940s.
George S. May, the pioneer of management consulting, was born in Windsor, Ill., on June 5, 1890. May applied his enjoyment of mechanical and technical issues by becoming a freelance problem-solving consultant to companies. By 1924, George S. May had married and had a family to care for, settling in Chicago. February 1, 1925 was the day he founded the George S. May Company. The company billed only $10,000 during its first year. Yet only three years later, the company billed around $250,000.
Like many others, the George S May company suffered from the stock market crash of October of 1929. George S. May’s courage, and the confidence he inspired in his creditors, helped the company survive and even thrive through these tough times. Billings continued to rise, topping $1 million by 1937.
In 1929 the company opened offices in New York City and San Francisco. The company moved headquarters to downtown Chicago in 1940 and occupied a series of offices there for the next 26 years.
As the U.S. entered World War Two, the George S. May International Company worked for U.S. government and many war-related companies to streamline operations in order to meet wartime needs. By the war’s end in 1945, billings topped $6 million.
George S May realized that the end of the war would change the business scene, and adapted by moving toward servicing smaller companies formed during the war rather than industrial giants.
These new markets exploded and as a result the company expanded, with more than 500 employees by 1950. The company continues to thrive by catering to small to medium sized businesses, topping the $100 million mark in billings since 1990.